No Talks On Poll Understanding With Kumaraswamy's Party For 2024: Bommai

Senior BJP leader Basavaraj Bommai said today that no discussions have taken place at the state level regarding a poll understanding with the Janata Dal Secular (JDS) for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and maintained that it is difficult to predict the future in politics.

The former Karnataka chief minister said his party is keeping watch on the discussions in the media about uniting other parties against the ruling Congress in Karnataka.

"No discussions have happened at the state level, let's see in the days to come, it is difficult to predict the future in politics," Mr Bommai told reporters here in response to a question on an understanding with JDS.

To a question about uniting other parties to "tie up" Congress, he said, "such talks are taking place strongly in the press, and discussions are taking place in all channels in this regard, we are keeping watch." 

Following the Assembly poll results, there were reports in a section of the media that JDS would enter into an alliance with the BJP to fight the Lok Sabha polls. It was also said that JDS leader and former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had met some senior BJP leaders during his recent visit to New Delhi.

Interestingly, Mr Kumaraswamy had on Monday said a decision on an electoral understanding for the Lok Sabha polls will be taken when the situation arises, and there is no proposal before him as of now to contest the Parliamentary elections.

Mr Kumaraswamy was responding to a question regarding speculation of a possible alliance between the BJP and JDS for the Lok Sabha polls and about him contesting that election.

The BJP had swept the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka by winning 25 of the total 28 seats in the State, while an independent backed by it won in one seat. The Congress and JDS secured one seat each.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)